Readout of Prime Minister’s meeting with Taoiseach Simon Harris

Following the Prime Minister's meeting with Taoiseach Simon Harris this afternoon, a Downing Street spokesperson said:

“The Prime Minister met Taoiseach Simon Harris at Farmleigh House in Dublin this afternoon.

“The Prime Minister thanked the Taoiseach for his invitation, noting that this was the first visit of a UK Prime Minister to Ireland in five years.

“Both leaders shared their personal commitment to an ambitious reset of the UK and Ireland's relationship. They noted the existing ties between our two countries, but agreed they wanted to go even further – in particular on trade and investment to help boost growth and deliver on behalf of the British and Irish people.

“In that vein, they agreed to host the first UK-Ireland summit in March next year, which will take forward co-operation in key areas of mutual interest such as security, climate, trade and culture.

“They both strongly condemned recent scenes of violent disorder in England and Ireland and agreed to deepen their collaboration on how we tackle the spread of the online misinformation which fuelled the thuggery.

“They looked forward to watching the Republic of Ireland vs England Nations' League football match this evening.”